Jakarta (AsiaNews) - With the goal of strengthening the sense of cooperation and mutual friendship through seminars and hands-on activities, Catholic doctors and medical students from various faculties throughout Indonesia took part in the 19th edition of the annual meeting promoted by "Pjpmkfki".
This association brings together a network of Catholic physicians - present and future - throughout the archipelago and this year met in a Carmelite center of the Archdiocese of Medan, in the province of North Sumatra.
The weeklong
event was attended by about 80 participants from different universities
- public and private - around the country.
As highlighted by Cinthya Theresia Tambunan, a student of Medical Sciences of the University of Indonesia in Jakarta, the initiative has reinforced a "sense of cooperation and mutual
relations between us".
The 2014 edition
was made possible thanks to the
collaboration between the student group of St. Luke's North Sumatra University
and members of St. Raphael Methodist University,
both from Medan.
During the seminar teachers and students
visited remote areas, to provide free medical care to the local population.
Practical activities plus seminars on basic healthcare and disease prevention,
which was also attended by a number of local priests.
With the theme "Increase Solidarity for Unity," priests and participants strengthened their ties to cement the
spirit of cooperation in the service of society and of the sick in particular. The
members of Pjpmkfki describe the group as "informal", born in 1990 during the
regime of President Suharto at
the initiative of the students of
the University of Indonesia in
Jakarta and Padjajaran University in Bandung, West
Java, both state universities.
In the beginning the group came under the scrutiny of government
intelligence, which censored and blocked any activities
not in line
with the regime. Over time, the project has been expanded to include students and professionals from all over the country.
Cinthya Tambunan, originally from
Medan, adds that "on a
personal level, this type of initiative is
a unique opportunity to allow
participants [of universities]
to get know each other better and this boosts everyone's moral".
Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim nation, Christians
represent 5.7 per cent of the population with Catholics just over 3.6 per cent.
Catholics are an active component in society. Over the years, they have
contributed to the nation's development and played a major role in emergency
operations, as was the case during the devastating floods of January 2013.